


eucalyptus and falling in love

by waterpots



Category: PRISTIN (Band)
Genre: F/F, Harry Potter AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-24
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-15 09:39:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,287
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15410103
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/waterpots/pseuds/waterpots
Summary: Amortentia smells like the things you like the most. Minkyung learns to place one of the smells of Amortentia.





	eucalyptus and falling in love

**Author's Note:**

> hey

Yoonsun was coughing loudly, which generally meant that someone (usually Yoonsun’s partner, who had an annoying smile and such poor manners that Minkyung had never even bothered to learn the name) had shouted “alley-oop” before dumping a whole vial of something into their cauldron and ultimately causing a whole mess that somebody (never Minkyung, usually Baek Yebin, god bless her soul) had to clean up.

“I’m pretty sure that was just straight chili powder,” Yoobin grumbles, turning around in her stool to face their own cauldrons. “I don’t even think it was an ingredient for the potion, I think it was just straight chili powder.” Minkyung hums. Yoobin is her closest friend at school; the two bonded over both being incredibly dedicated towards their schoolwork, and also a general disdain for the teenage hormones that overtook most of the other students.

“Do you smell anything?” Minkyung asks. “My bet’s on old textbooks, a broomstick, and color-coded socks.” Yoobin took a whiff out of their cauldron and wrinkled her nose.

“It smells like the lake?”

“The lake?”

“And some kind of beef dish that I can’t place specifically and also definitely some kind of cheap laundry detergent.”

“Did we make a mistake?”

“The potion did everything that we expected it to, I don’t think we could have. You smell it.”

Minkyung shrugs but smells it anyway. It smelled of cinnamon sugar pretzels, of the outside on a cold winter day, and eucalyptus. It was nice, and it was unimportant.

“It seems like it worked. We should check with the professor.”

“You’re not going to tell me what it smelled like?”

“It only smells like cheap laundry detergent,” Minkyung says, and Yoobin makes a face.

“You mock me,” she grumbles, but stands up anyway to tear their professor away from whatever sort of mess the Gryffindor students had made.

Their potion was flawless, as she had expected. First time making a love potion and Kim Minkyung was, as always, killing it. Yoobin tried one last time before they were leaving to get Minkyung to reveal the smell the Amortentia had for her, even going so far as to joke that it “smelled like [her],” and that Yoobin was okay that she had these feelings, but that sadly she could not reciprocate. But Minkyung left the smell behind her. The smells were common, and they didn’t have to mean anything. None of it actually had to mean anything at all.

At least, that’s what she’d hoped.

* * *

“I just don’t know what to do now that my two stupid prefect best friends are busy gallivanting around school at night and putting poor troublemakers like me, good natured folks who just want to cause mischief, out of business.”

“Aw, it’s such a sad life you lead, being the star seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team and also beloved by everyone in school.”

“Our poor little protagonist friend. It must be difficult to exist in a world where you don’t get cursed out by first year purebloods who think they run the world.” Yaebin should have expected this. She should have anticipated and not laid out her complaints. She should have not been the fool and just written it in her diary (which they read, she knows that, but at least they mock her about that behind her back). Kyungwon has her head on Yaebin’s lap. They’re sitting in a couch in the Gryffindor common room and Kyungwon’s legs are dangling off the side of the couch and no part of the way she’s sitting looks comfortable. Eunwoo is next to them, humming some song she got hooked on during her summer in the Muggle world with her mom’s side of the family.

“It’s not like Kyungwon even goes to the meetings or does half her patrols.”

“I do all my patrols!” Kyungwon said indignantly, making to sit up and glare at Eunwoo, but, finding that sitting up is the worst thing she could do given her current physical position, trying instead to give her a menacing glare with her head still on Yaebin’s lap. It did not work. “I do have a tendency to trade with the Hufflepuff prefect so that I patrol near the kitchens at night, and yes the house elves do make me food which I willingly eat, so yes I do also sit in and have conversations with them because it is only polite, but the assumption that I am shirking my responsibilities as a prefect of this brilliant institution is, frankly, offensive to me.”

“What do you do to get the Hufflepuff prefect to trade?”

“I promised them tutoring lessons in divination, which is hilarious considering I failed it.”

“Wait did you really?” Eunwoo gasped.

“That’s for me to know and you to never find out.”

“I can’t believe you guys diverted the topic from my perpetual loneliness.”

“You guys will be busy enough with your OWL-ing and NEWT-ing or whatever.”

“You take the NEWTS this year, we don’t,” Yaebin said, calmly explaining.

“Who cares, I got other life plans, you know?”

“I get what you’re saying with your whole incredibly well thought out Kang-Kyungwon-vs-the-world plan and all, but how are you going to get a job for a Muggle sports radio channel when your only experience is incredibly biased reporting for a wizard sport that Muggles don’t know exists?”

“Well, first of all it’s reporting on Muggle sports for the wizarding world, and second my reporting is incredibly unbiased. I once called Yaebin ‘a blind fool who knows how to play the sport of Quidditch as well as she knows how to brush her teeth regularly and match her socks, which is to say she knows nothing at all’.”

“I just feel like that’s part of the bias,” Yaebin mumbled.

“Yeah, that really is,” Eunwoo agreed quietly.

Kyungwon shrugged. “Slytherin fans loved it.”

* * *

“I can’t think there’s a good reason you’re in the library right now.” Yaebin jumped. She was in a rather talkative part of the library, sure, but the looming and intimidating figure of Slytherin head girl Im Nayoung transcended everything, striking fear into the hearts of all no matter what the situation (that’s maybe a tad dramatic, but you must believe in the truth of Kang Yaebin). It would shock her even if she had anticipated it (she really should have).

“Mayhaps I am here to study,” Yaebin said. All she got for such a clever and well thought out line was a sigh and a look from Nayoung. There’s no respect in places like this for people like her.

“Please don’t do anything that will hurt any of the students, for the love of god.”

“When have I ever done that? No don’t even bother looking at me like that I know the answer. I remember that day vividly in my mind I don’t think either you or I actually want to go into what happened. And to be fair that was a tactical misfire not on my part, but on somebody else’s part. I don’t know who, but I know that I’ve never worked with them since.”

Yaebin has always admired the way Nayoung looks at her, like someone who’s just eaten a sour grape, but still really likes grapes. That’s why they’re friends (or whatever they are. They aren’t really friends, Yaebin can at least admit that, especially given that their first 50 interactions happened because Yaebin was caught outside of her dorm after hours). But they’d developed the sort of rapport you’d expect from a disgruntled Head Girl and a mischievous Gryffindor, and Yaebin likes to believe somewhere along the way it had developed into something more like friendship.

“Were you any good at herbology?” Yaebin asks, and the sour grape look is gone.

“I did okay.”

“Do you think you could help me with the healing effects of mugwort in potions? The paper is for Herbology but on a Potions topic. I don’t get it.”

Nayoung opens her mouth to offer some help, but a pop and fizzing noise in the background stops her. The sour grape look is back.

“I was here the whole time, I couldn’t have done it,” Yaebin says, but they both know Nayoung doesn’t believe her. “It also wasn’t supposed to go off until I left.” And this time Nayoung does believe her.

* * *

One of the strangest things the prefects have done is arrange to go to Quidditch games together. They don’t all go to all games, but they make an effort to go to some. The Head Girls and Head Boys are big on trying to make sure they don’t just go to Gryffindor-Slytherin games, but those are the only ones where a clear rivalry shines through, and you can’t blame people for only really being interested in that.

Minkyung isn’t really watching the players fly around and warm-up before the game. She’d rather look around at the other people who came to watch. Granted, she’d rather not be here at all, considering her Defense Against the Dark Arts test tomorrow is going to absolutely kick her ass, but that’s neither here nor there.

There’s a group of girls sitting nearby, one of them complaining loudly about “those jerks who always make me come to these things and then leave me alone.” Minkyung recognizes two of them as fellow members of Ravenclaw. She knows Sungyeon, who’s been vying for a prefect position for the next school year. She decides to say hello.

The other Ravenclaw is Kyla, a second-year who Minkyung vaguely remembers showing around Hogwarts the year before, when she got lost on the first day. Sungyeon is kind enough to introduce her to the rest of them, Yewon and Jieqiong, both Hufflepuff, and Eunwoo, the Gryffindor who was complaining about “those jerks.”

“Who are you guys rooting for?” Minkyung asks, just trying to make a bit of small talk. Eunwoo gives her a withering look. “Besides you.”

“I’m kind of rooting for Slytherin,” Kyla says with a shrug. Eunwoo turns her look on Kyla, but Kyla is apparently very good at ignoring it. “I have a class with Siyeon, the seeker, and she’s really nice.”

“Siyeon is nothing compared to Gryffindor’s star seeker Kang Yaebin and you know it! Yaebin would eat Siyeon for breakfast.”

“Yaebin is smaller than Siyeon,” Kyla replies.

“This isn’t a height competition!”

“Well, it would probably just be easier for Siyeon to eat Yaebin than the other way around, given their heights.”

“She makes a very compelling argument,” Yewon cuts in. “I’m also rooting for Slytherin, just because they’ve lost the Cup the past few years. An underdog story is always more fun, plus the drama of the upset it would cause just seems like a blast.”

“I’m rooting for Gryffindor,” Jieqiong says, “because I would fear for my life if I didn’t.”

“This everyone,” Eunwoo says, patting Jieqiong on the back. “Is my best and only friend Jieqiong, the rest of you are dead to me.”

“I’m rooting for Ravenclaw overall,” Sungyeon says.

“I wouldn’t bet on it,” Kyla grumbles, and they all murmur in agreement.

There’s a crackling of the microphone system being turned on, which is a signal the game is about to start. They really should update the system, considering the year and the fact that it definitely predates the lifespan of any current student and probably any teacher as well, but it makes for an easy sign the game is about to start.

“Good morning guys and gals, isn’t it just a wonderful afternoon to watch some folks fly around on broomsticks and contemplate just how in the hell magic is real? My name is Kyungwon, and it’s time for a huge Gryffindor-Slytherin match that will make you foolishly bet money on a team that might not win. Wait sorry, I’m getting disapproving looks. Remember that betting on Quidditch matches is illegal, don’t do that.”

“She’s really just going to make a fool of herself today, isn’t she?” Eunwoo says, with a fond smile that betrays the disgruntled tone she’s going for.

“Announcing the Quidditch games is what she does best,” Yewon chimes in.

“That’s a pretty low bar, huh?” Sungyeon replies.

The Quaffle is thrown in the air, and the match begins.

* * *

Minkyung walks back with Sungyeon and Kyla to the Ravenclaw common room, Yewon and Jieqiong tag along until they part ways down towards the kitchen. Gryffindor won the match, and Eunwoo disappeared almost immediately to be the first one down to the pitch to congratulate the players.

“I still think we could beat the other teams for the house cup,” Sungyeon is saying, and Minkyung is only half listening. “We’re Ravenclaw, for god’s sake. You think we could create some kind of strategy that the other teams wouldn’t see coming.”

“There is no strategy to a bludger,” Kyla says sagely, and Yewon nods along with her.

“I just don’t think there’s as much investment in Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff,” Yewon says with a shrug. “Gryffindor and Slytherin have had this rivalry going on forever, so there’s always a sense of drama.”

“And a Ravenclaw upset would completely overthrow that whole system!”

“That’s also a fair point,” Kyla says.

“A Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw rivalry would at least garner some more interest for their games,” Jieqiong is saying, and Minkyung loses the thread of the conversation at this point. They’re passing by the Gryffindor team, and Minkyung can see Eunwoo in the middle of it, talking animatedly to Gryffindor’s seeker, probably explaining something she saw during the game.

And that’s when Minkyung smells it, quietly wafting through the air: the smell of eucalyptus.

* * *

“You know Im Nayoung.” Minkyung hasn’t seen any of the girls she sat with at the game in the two weeks since it happened, well at least any of them that weren’t in her house. She’s in The Great Hall, trying to get some studying done, and she doesn’t expect Eunwoo to sit across from her.

“I mean, vaguely and technically,” Minkyung replies.

“Where do I find her?” Minkyung blinks. She has no answer to that. “I only see her during prefect meetings and I can never catch up to her after them and I have a question for her.”

“I don’t know where she is at every second of the day?”

Eunwoo sighs. “Then do you know Kang Yaebin? Gryffindor’s seeker?” Minkyung stares at her blankly. “Do you remember last year when the pudding came out and there were m&ms in all of them that spelled out the word “dickbutt” on every house’s table?” Minkyung nods. “That’s her work.”

“I don’t know her.”

“You are killing me!” Eunwoo leans back dramatically as she speaks. “If you see Nayoung tell her that I want to speak to her. I’d ask Kyungwon to do it, but she’ll know what I’m on about and that’s the last thing I need. I’m counting on you.” She leaves before Minkyung can say anything else.

* * *

Siyeon hates Muggle Studies. Granted, Siyeon’s more and more been hating most of her classes, which is really unfair. The professors are nice and all, but there’s something of a looming knowledge of what happens once you’ve finished all these classes and all this schooling that’s been getting to Siyeon.

Maybe thirteen is a bit too young for an existential crisis, but Siyeon can’t help herself.

They’re supposed to be doing some reading, and answering some questions, and Siyeon’s probably the only person who isn’t just diligently doing her work. Actually, scratch that, the girl next to her is equally not as involved.

“Hey,” Siyeon says, poking the girl in the side to get her attention.

“Aren’t you supposed to be doing work?” The girl asks.

“Aren’t you?” No response. “Plus, the professor is sleeping.” The girl looks up front, and confirms it to be true. “My name’s Siyeon.”

“Kyla,” she responds. “I’m a second year.”

“You skipped a level?”

“Apparently being a non-wizard child lets you skip a year of Muggle Studies sometimes. Instead of learning things I already knew, I get to learn more things I already knew.”

The two sit in silence for a moment, before Siyeon tries to ask another question to break the awkwardness.

“Is it weird? Being Muggle-born and going here?” Kyla stares at her for a moment. “Is it inappropriate to ask that?”

“No I-” Kyla pauses. “Every day something really weird happens. And sometimes I’m like ‘there’s no way that’s normal’ but it is. And any time I try and be accepting of something, someone tells me that it’s not normal for the wizarding world. At this point I’ve just accepted that anything could be anything, and I shouldn’t even try and guess.”

Siyeon nods. “That’s an intense life philosophy.”

“Right now I’m aiming solely for survival,” Kyla says, joking. Siyeon grins. The professor doesn’t wake up until class is over.

* * *

“So, there’s this new game out, for the new Nintendo system. All I’ve been doing is pestering my mom about buying it, but we’ll see.”

“It’s a Sumerian cognate language!”

“Breath of the Wild?”

“No,” Eunwoo glares at Kyungwon. “The thing I’ve been looking at.”

“Oh. That thing that’s not the potion that you have to make tomorrow that we’re at the library for because Yaebin asked for us to come here so you guys could look stuff up for it?”

“The what?” Yaebin gave up on looking up potion information long ago, considering Kyungwon just got a letter from her mom (WITH attached photos of Kyungwon’s dog), so Kyungwon wasn’t there to help or even act as silent moral support, and Yaebin wasn’t going to do any of the research on her own (she was kind of hoping Eunwoo would do it and she could be moral support). But Eunwoo’s on one of her kicks again, so nobody is getting anything done. Kyungwon’s got the dog photos out, Yaebin’s been doodling in the corner of her notebook for the past half hour, and Eunwoo found some book on something and has been reading excitedly.

It’s on a Sumerian cognate language, if such a thing could exist.

“It was a magic language around the same time. They didn’t write in cuneiform, and it’s indecipherable, but it’s supposedly more effective for spellcasting than wands or anything else.” She held out a sheet of funny symbols. Yaebin and Kyungwon nodded, pretending to understand.

“But what’s the point?” Kyungwon asked.

“Well, right now, nothing. But when I graduate and become a magic anthropologist-”

“You’re gonna be a what?” Kyungwon cut in, grinning.

“Magic anthropologist.”

“I thought you wanted to work as an Auror,” Yaebin says.

“No, last month it was for NASA in the States.”

“I’m fifteen! I’m allowed to have a multitude of dreams of varying shades of colors!” They stared at her. “Am I not?”

“A multitude of dreams of varying shades of colors,” Kyungwon echoed.

“Yeah, dude,” Yaebin said. “That’s a little…”

“Bad.”

“I was gonna just say pretentious but I can’t argue too hard against that.”

Eunwoo huffed. “When I decipher this Sumerian language I’m going to use the most painful spells on the two of you.”

* * *

The confidence. The absurdity. The absolute gall of Jung Eunwoo to have just asked Nayoung the question she just asked her. If Nayoung wasn’t a delightful and kind person who handles everyone with a kindness and care that Eunwoo has never seen out of Gryffindor’s Head Girl, she’d probably make fun of Eunwoo, or call her out. Instead she just goes with

“I’m sorry?”

“I was wondering if you had any ideas.” For Eunwoo to put herself out there like this, to bear her heart to Nayoung in this way. It was admirable. It was bravery.

“I don’t.” It was a mistake. It was a big mistake. “At least, nothing I’d like for you to emulate that she likes.”

“That’s fair,” Eunwoo says. “I thought I would try at least.”

Nayoung nods. “You should ask your friends.” Eunwoo wrinkles her nose. “If you want Yaebin to like you-”

“Shh,” Eunwoo puts a hand over Nayoung’s mouth. “Don’t say her name too loud.”

Nayoung takes a step back, so Eunwoo isn’t covering her mouth anymore. “If you want her to like you, your friends would probably have a better idea. You should be working on showing her the best parts of yourself to her. Not doing things just because she likes them.”

Eunwoo nodded. “If this were a movie I would say presenting an accurate image of myself is stupid, and spend the duration of the film trying to present a false image of myself that Yaebin wouldn’t like anyway, because she already loves me for me.” Nayoung nods, not following. “This isn’t a movie, so instead I will take your advice wholeheartedly and thank you for your contribution.”

Eunwoo leaves, and after she does Nayoung wonders if she really needs advice to get her best friend to like her. Nayoung doesn’t dwell on it too much, it’s probably not her place.

* * *

Sungyeon starts studying with Minkyung. Minkyung doesn’t remember when it happens, but they end up across from each other in the library, or sometimes when they’re both in the common room Sungyeon will ask her if she wants to go to the Great Hall with her. Somewhere along the way Minkyung recognizes this as the beginning of friendship. So it’s no surprise when Sungyeon asks her if she wants to go to a Quidditch game.

“It’s Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff, which maybe isn’t super exciting, but Jieqiong’s playing and Yewon and Eunwoo are getting super into it, which is ridiculous. Jieqiong’s a keeper it’s not even like her and Yaebin cross paths when they play. But I’m going, and Kyla’s going, so I want to know if you want to go.”

Minkyung has said no to going to things plenty of times before. Quidditch games, Hogsmeade visits. She’s always got something else she could be studying for, and it’s late October and in the middle of a bit of a cold snap anyway, so she really should just say no.

So she doesn’t know why she says yes, anyway.

* * *

Kyla brought along Siyeon, the Slytherin seeker, and Eunwoo is glaring at her when she gets there.

“Are we doing the rivalry today?” Eunwoo asks.

“Right now the scores in the upcoming Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff game are the only one that determine our Quidditch Cup position, so not really?”

“Oh awesome! How are you?” Eunwoo’s glare is gone and she’s treating Siyeon like they’re old friends. Siyeon lets slip to Minkyung later that she’s never met Eunwoo before in her life.

Eunwoo brought hot chocolate, a lot of it, in an insulated thermos she brought from home and Yewon mumbles about the beauty of Muggle technology. She’s pouring everyone cups of it and saying that “it might as well be magic, because like hell I have any idea how it works.”

Siyeon has to awkwardly greet Minkyung, and Minkyung remembers her father mentioning a few years back that the Park family’s daughter was going to start school soon. She realizes that of course it’s the Slytherin team seeker, and that the last time she saw Siyeon the girl was five. She doesn’t mention any of that to her. It’s the last thing a thirteen year old needs.

“How many parsecs is a Quidditch pitch,” the announcer says, after the crackle signals her starting. “Now that I’ve lost over half of you, allow me to talk about the Loser’s Rebellion. Just kidding, it’s sports time!”

The game is mostly Yewon and Eunwoo dramatically cheering for their own teams. The announcer, the same one as the last game, is strange, and at one point she made fun of the Gryffindor seeker, which only led to Eunwoo yelling at her from their position in the stands.

“It seems there’s a fly buzzing in the stands, in the Gryffindor section. That’s so weird,” the announcer is saying.

“Grow a spine and support your own team you coward!” Eunwoo yells back.

“It’s a shame you cannot dock points from buzzing flies. But Hufflepuff keeper Zhou Jieqiong makes a nice save, so maybe that’s the karma the Gryffindor team gets.”

“It’s a shame I can’t dock points from your weird stupid face!” Eunwoo sits down, looking furious, but everyone else is laughing, and she’s soon laughing along with them.

Gryffindor wins, again, but it’s a close game even with the Snitch being caught and Yewon looks beyond pleased with herself and disappears to congratulate and console her team. Eunwoo is just as quick, and Minkyung feels a sting of jealousy. It’s small, very small, but she can’t help but wish she cared as much about their house pride as they did. She considers making an effort to go to the next Ravenclaw game, but she doesn’t know if she’ll follow through.

She smells eucalyptus again when she walks by the Gryffindor team. Eunwoo is still with the Gryffindor seeker, and Minkyung realizes she can probably rule out the owner of the eucalyptus smell being from Hufflepuff or Slytherin. It might be a Ravenclaw, but it’s probably a Gryffindor. Minkyung stores that information in the back of her brain, because she’s not looking for the eucalyptus smell owner, she’s just curious.

* * *

It’s by pure coincidence that Eunwoo decides to talk to Yewon first. She was actually aiming for Jieqiong, but she was outside the wrong room, and Yewon came out instead. So Eunwoo decided to seek her expert advice instead.

“I think you should try and engage in her interests,” Yewon says.

“That’s the exact opposite of what Nayoung said. She said to present the best side of myself.”

“I mean, if you don’t like them, you shouldn’t do them, but trying them out wouldn’t hurt. Showing an interest in what other people are interested in is Important with a capital I.”

Eunwoo nods. “So I should prank people?”

“Is that what she likes?”

“Yeah. She’s trying to be the best pranker Hogwarts has ever seen.”

“Is it working?”

Eunwoo shrugs. “She gets caught about as frequently as she doesn’t, so maybe?”

“That would be my advice,” Yewon says. “If you like it you can be like ‘hey this interest you have is really fun, we should do it together,’ and if you don’t like it, well I don’t know.”

“Guess I’ll figure out how to prank someone then.”

“One thing,” Yewon said. She stopped walking and turned to face Eunwoo. “If you prank me, I’ll end your life. Be aware.”

“I was probably going to go for Kyungwon,” Eunwoo replied awkwardly.

“Oh. Then go wild.”

* * *

Kyla’s been helping Siyeon with Muggle Studies. Helps is a broadly used word, because if Siyeon did her readings she’d know the answers, but she’d rather do assignments with Kyla. Siyeon likes to hear her laugh about the hypothesized reasons for the American Revolution or the inner workings of an iPhone.

“Do Muggles really use phones to stop communicating with each other?” Siyeon asks, reading from the worksheet.

“You sound like my parents,” Kyla says with a laugh.

“That’s what the sheet says,” Siyeon says with a shrug.

“You use a phone to talk to people.” Siyeon marks a little note about it on the corner of her paper. “It’s a wonder you guys even have pens.”

“It’s a really recent innovation,” Siyeon says. “My mom thinks that it’s destroying us as a generation.”

“Pens,” Kyla whispered quietly under her breath. “Have you never been to the non-wizarding world?”

“A handful of times,” Siyeon says. “My parents sometimes have business there. They work in the government. But it’s more of a touristy visit, and I never get to see stuff like smartphones.”

Siyeon rests her head on the table, sighing. Kyla mirrors her position. “Not the most fun class, huh?”

“All of them are boring. Even Defense Against the Dark Arts! That should be fun! Fighting evil wizards, doing good for the world, but everything is boring.”

“I think it’s fun.”

“It’s because it’s new for you. I grew up with it already.”

Kyla nods, her head rubbing against the table. “I bet you’d find a physics class really cool.”

“It sounds painful.”

“It’s like. The laws that govern the things of the world or something. I’m not really sure. My mom studied it in college.”

“How does that work with magic?”

“It doesn’t. Every time you use magic you’re breaking a law of physics.” Siyeon hums. “We’re all going to go to hell when we die because of this. We’re breaking the natural order of the things.”

“Could have seen it coming,” Siyeon says, and grins at Kyla across the table. She returns it.

* * *

Minkyung spots Eunwoo one day, after class, sitting with a sixth year Gryffindor prefect, who is coughing loudly while holding a piece of chocolate. Eunwoo looks uncomfortable, but still gives Minkyung a peace sign as a greeting. Minkyung returns it with a wave. When she walks past, it smells very strongly of onion powder.

“Kyungwon, if you die on me I’m going to lose my damn mind,” she hears Eunwoo say to the prefect.

“How could you do this to me,” Kyungwon croaks out.

* * *

“It was the biggest mistake of my life,” Eunwoo laments. Sungyeon stares at her impassively. She was trying to study outside, trying to enjoy the cool Autumn weather. Nobody was supposed to be able to find her without a lot of added effort.

“That’s not really Yewon’s strong suit.”

“But Yewon’s delightful!”

“Sometimes,” Sungyeon said slowly. “Delightful people to befriend aren’t always delightful people to date.”

“That’s wise,” Eunwoo said. Sungyeon had to give her credit, at least she knew to butter up the people she was (futilely) seeking advice from.

“If you want her to like you you should make your romantic intentions clear.”

“Confession!”

“Just flirt with her. A confession is a little,” Sungyeon trailed off.

“Severe?”

“Yes. You’re getting it! Now you should go and do that without my advice, because I’m doing something and I don’t want anyone else here for it.” Eunwoo nodded and made herself scarce. Again, at least Eunwoo was kind. And Sungyeon appreciated how much effort Eunwoo was putting into getting this girl to like her. She figured Yaebin was a lucky girl, but what did she know.

* * *

Kyungwon and Yaebin are actually doing what they set out to do. Granted, that means that Kyungwon is trying to get the small radio she smuggled into school to work, so she can listen to a rugby match that was supposed to start pretty soon, and Yaebin is sitting behind her, practicing her desk drumming while trying to comprehend a magazine she needs to read for a Muggle Studies class, but it’s what they set out to do nonetheless. Kyungwon pays it no mind when Eunwoo comes down from upstairs and slams something down at the table Yaebin is at.

“Are you from Mississippi?”

“No?”

“Because you’re the only miss I sippy.” There is silence from the entire common room. Only the three of them are in it. Kyungwon can only imagine the faces Eunwoo and Yaebin are making as she stares up at the ceiling, no longer tuning the radio, desperately trying to understand. Wondering if understanding is possible. If anything is anymore.

“What?” Yaebin asks quietly.

“I want to know if you want to play chess,” Eunwoo replies, trying to regain some confidence after whatever just happened.

“Sure?”

“Good, because all I want to do is checkmate you.”

The silence continues. Kyungwon wonders if Eunwoo knows she’s here. Surely she does. And Kyungwon should really just make fun of Eunwoo. Diffuse the tension. Save her from this situation, from whatever she’s trying to do.

“All you want to do is beat me in Wizards Chess? We’ve never played before though.”

They sit in silence for what feels like an eternity longer, until Eunwoo finally excuses herself by saying that her room is on fire.

“What was that?” Yaebin asks after Eunwoo’s gone back upstairs.

“I have no clue. Typical Eunwoo?” Yaebin is quiet for a moment. Kyungwon wonders what she’s thinking about.

“Maybe,” Yaebin says finally, and they leave it.

* * *

A Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff game isn’t one to really get the old ‘I care about sports’ juices flowing, but Minkyung figures it’s better than trying to care about a game with Gryffindor (and she figures she’ll run into Eunwoo at one of those and she’s not yet invested enough to compete with her).

Minkyung doesn’t even know if she’ll care. Sports aren’t something she’s ever liked, but jealousy is jealousy, and Minkyung wants to know if a minor investment in Quidditch will make jealousy cease.

Minkyung’s learned she has no investment in Quidditch, and that the announcer is somehow getting away with being one of the least professional announcers she’s ever heard.

“A nice save by Zhou Jieqiong, keeping the score at a nice, even, whatever-it-was.”

“Quidditch, as well all remember,” the announcer continues. “Is a game in which everything matters up until someone gets rich, after which everything becomes meaningless.”

Minkyung watches one of the Ravenclaw beaters narrowly avoid getting hit. Minkyung recognizes her, but the name escapes her.

Oh. It’s because the snitch is gold, Minkyung realizes, getting the announcer’s dumb joke. Figures.

Minkyung doesn’t leave with much positive feeling towards Quidditch. She catches Sungyeon and Kyla on the way out, and Sungyeon looks beyond proud.

“Eunwoo and Yaebin were supposed to go with us, but they both bailed at the last minute,” Sungyeon tells her. “I figured you wouldn’t want to go, since you were talking about some forbidden curses lesson that was coming up. Sorry.”

Minkyung shakes her head. “Last minute decision for me as well.”

“I was told if I congratulated you guys I would never see the light of day again, but good job.” It’s Kyungwon, the sixth year prefect who’s friends with Eunwoo. She’s talking to Namjoo, and pats her on the back in a congratulatory way before moving to find the Hufflepuff team. She passes by the three of them, and pats Sungyeon on the shoulder.

“Don’t die!” Sungyeon calls out to her.

“If I do, Jieqiong is the prime suspect!” Kyungwon calls back, and she’s gone.

“She’s the announcer for all the Quidditch games,” Sungyeon tells Minkyung and Kyla. “Have you guys met her?” They both shake their head.

“You should sometime.”

* * *

Jieqiong set Eunwoo straight. If Yaebin wasn’t falling head over heels for her, all she had to do to turn this around was pretend she wasn’t head over heels the other way around. Then Yaebin would surely come running to her.

That was relatively easy, all Eunwoo had to do was not go to a Quidditch game. Which was, actually, hard, as it turned out, considering she would usually go early with Yaebin and Kyungwon. They’d watch Yaebin warm up and then Eunwoo and Kyungwon would chat until Kyungwon had to go and set herself up as announcer, and Eunwoo would meet whatever friends she was meeting. Instead she had to claim “things to do” (which Kyungwon clearly didn’t buy), and desperately usher them out before they could call her bluff.

Finding time to fill the duration of the Quidditch game was also hard. Normally she filled spare time hanging out with friends. Friends who were all down at the Quidditch pitch right now. She could do work, but she was actually relatively caught up. Jung Eunwoo is no slacker. So she putts around until the game is over.

And here was the important part for her, sitting in the common room when the team and adoring fans got back. Yaebin seemed shocked to see Eunwoo sitting there, and ran up. The fact that Eunwoo hadn’t seen the game seemed borderline secondary, since now she could recount her favorite parts of the game to her.

“We won! I just barely got the snitch in time! Namjoo was close but I did the coolest stick maneuver and beat her to it!” Yaebin is smiling widely, and it hurts Eunwoo in some ways to do this.

“Okay,” she says impassively. Yaebin smile falters.

“Okay?”

“What do you want me to say?” Eunwoo asks, and it comes out harsher than she intended.

“I,” Yaebin falters again. “I don’t know, I guess.” Eunwoo shrugs and goes upstairs. She can see Kyungwon standing with Sejeong, the Gryffindor Head Girl, watching her move.

“I think I did something wrong,” she hears Yaebin say quietly to Kyungwon.

* * *

Siyeon invites Kyla out one time after a Hogsmeade trip. She’s made a small fortune saving her allowance, and she figures it’s about time to blow it on some fun, senseless spending. She figures Kyla also ought to enjoy the spoils of her crusade through Honeydukes.

“Bertie Botts, Chocolate Frogs, Pepper Imps, Toffee,” Siyeon is saying, pointing to everything as she names it. They’re outside, and it’s only a little chilly. “I cut out some of the dumber novelty ones, the stuff that tastes like blood. People really only buy them to play pranks on first years. Nobody actually likes them.” Kyla nods. “What do you want?” She asks, picking up a chocolate frog.

“What?”

“What do you want?” Siyeon repeats. “You’ve probably never had wizard candy before.” Kyla shakes her head no. “I’m here to be your official guide! The frogs move, so maybe we don’t start with that,” she said, surveying the candy. “You have jelly beans in the Muggle world, so these must be pretty similar,” she says finally, holding up some Bertie Bott’s. “Just more flavors.”

Kyla tries one.

“What does it taste like?” Siyeon asks.

“Steak,” Kyla responds, making an odd face.

“I don’t know if that’s good or bad.”

“Me either.”

They sat for a moment, Kyla slowly chewing and swallowing the candy.

“Do you want this card?” Siyeon asks for a moment, holding it out. “I already have it.”

“You collect these?” Kyla asks.

“Yeah.”

“Oh cool.” She takes the card. “Thanks.”

“Of course,” Siyeon says, grinning. “Now eat this living frog made of chocolate.”

* * *

It’s after break, January, and Kyungwon was hoping whatever was going on between Yaebin and Eunwoo would have blown over by then. It hasn’t.

They’ve fought before, sure, but never for this long, and she doesn’t know what to do with Yaebin’s lost puppy looks. Eunwoo’s also looking more and more unsure of something, but she won’t divulge it to Kyungwon, and she won’t give up any of her ground. They’re at a standstill.

Yaebin’s been hanging out with the Gryffindor Quidditch team, and Eunwoo always seems to have a rotating list of friends that she’s hanging out with instead. And that leaves Kyungwon. Kyungwon’s friends with most of Eunwoo’s friends, and she’s friendly enough with the Gryffindor Quidditch team, but hanging out too much with either group is picking sides, so instead Kyungwon hangs out in the library with the Slytherin head girl.

“You should get some work done,” Nayoung says, a perfect image of a hardworking student herself. “It would at least take your mind off of things.”

“It’s been too long,” Kyungwon laments. “I’ve taken my mind off of things as much as my mind is willing to be taken off of things. It’s time to be burdened.”

Nayoung isn’t the most talkative of people, which is mostly fine by Kyungwon. If she wanted a talkative friend she could find one, but Nayoung is understanding, if awkward, and that’s what Kyungwon needs right now. Someone who will be understanding, even if she can’t commiserate.

“Yaebin hasn’t done a prank since November,” Nayoung comments.

“You must be ecstatic,” Kyungwon grumbles.

Nayoung pauses writing a moment, thinking. “I find her pranks annoying,” she begins slowly. “But when they aren’t destructive to other students, people usually find them funny.” Kyungwon turned her head to the side, looking up at Nayoung from down at the table.

“I don’t know what you’re saying.”

“If student morale boosters involve breaking rules, sometimes that’s okay.” Nayoung resumes writing.

“God, the two of you really are friends,” Kyungwon grumbles.

“Just give them time to sort it out themselves,” Nayoung says, ignoring Kyungwon’s statement.

* * *

It’s February now, and the air has the crisp smell that comes along with the dead of winter, and staring directly in the face of the girl who’s responsible for the eucalyptus smell of the Amortentia potion that Minkyung and Yoobin made is starting to make Minkyung’s head spin.

She’s wondering if the Amortentia had the ability to tell the future, until she realizes that she’s been here before. They’ve both been here before.

* * *

_It’s Minkyung’s third year, and she’s outside with Yoobin and some third year Hufflepuff who claims to be a “god” at Care of Magical Creatures. Minkyung’s not buying it and she’s somehow starting to feel like she’s third wheeling an outdoor wander-and-discuss-hippogriffs session. Plenty of people are out, despite the cold, probably because of the fresh snowfall._

_The fresh snowfall is also probably why Minkyung ends up with a snowball smashing into her forehead, thrown harder than any other snowball (probably some magic involved), and how Minkyung ends up taking a few steps back, just barely catching herself before she falls to the ground._

_“I told you not to throw it!” One of the girls from the group is shouting. The other two are just laughing._

_“Are you okay?” Yoobin asks._

_“I’m fine, just surprised me,” Minkyung says, feeling for her forehead. It doesn’t hurt, which is probably a good sign._

_“Are you okay?” It’s the girl who was shouting, and she runs up to the three of them, looking concerned. Minkyung repeats that she’s fine, that it was just unexpected, and that her head didn’t hurt. “Yaebin wanted to practice levitating things. I told her if she was going to aim to at people to only aim it at Eunwoo. I’m sorry.”_

_“I guess she didn’t listen,” Yoobin said._

_“Actually, she’s just better at catching things than throwing them,” the girl replied wryly. Minkyung wondered if she knew they didn’t understand what she was saying. “I’m really sorry. Are you sure you’re okay?”_

_“Completely fine,” Minkyung replied._

_The girl shifted nervously from one foot to the other. “Well, if you end up having to go to the infirmary over it let me know, I’ll make it up to you. My name’s Kyungwon. I’m a third year. Gryffindor. You can find me.” And she returned to her friends with that. Minkyung never ended up needing to go to the infirmary, and the incident slipped from her mind until now, until Minkyung had to remember the strong smell of eucalyptus the entire time Kyungwon was talking to them._

* * *

“I’m so sorry!” Kyungwon looks just as worried as she did in their third year, and Minkyung’s pretty sure that she doesn’t recognize her. “I don’t know what Yewon was doing.”

“I missed!” Yewon says, and Sungyeon is furious.

“You were aiming for me?”

“But I missed!”

“Is your head okay?”

“It’s fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.” Kyungwon’s reaching out to touch it, and Minkyung has to take a step back to avoid her hand, as if her head isn’t already reeling enough right now. “Kyungwon.” And Kyungwon freezes.

“You know me?”

“This isn’t the first time one of your friends has hit me in the head with a snowball.”

“You remember that?”

“You remember that?”

“Of course I do, that was the worst experience of my third year. I thought you were going to die and then Yaebin decided to mention your family was like, important or something, and then I thought I was going to be sued and put in jail and I would die rotting away in wizard prison, thirteen years old.” Kyungwon’s stopped reaching for Minkyung’s forehead, which means she can relax a little bit. But only a tad, because Kyungwon still smells like eucalyptus, and still like the Amortentia, which Minkyung wishes she could have just forgotten about. “Plus, everyone in our year knows you. You’re the girl who scored a nearly perfect score on the OWLs last year or whatever. We had Transfiguration together in second year. I turned a rat into a balloon.”

“Oh.”

“Not my finest moment, I know.” Minkyung just nods. “Anyway, I’ll make Yewon apologize to you.”

“I’ll never apologize!” Yewon cuts out of her conversation with Sungyeon. “I didn’t aim for her, but if that’s what will get the Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff rivalry we deserve started, then that’s what I did!” Kyungwon sighs, and Minkyung just laughs. She knows Yewon isn’t too serious, and she knows the various small gifts that her owl brings to her over the course of the next week, ranging from a cold pack for her forehead to various candies from Hogsmeade is Yewon’s way of saying sorry.

* * *

Minkyung doesn’t see Kyungwon for two weeks after that. Well, she sees her, but she makes herself scarce every time. Having a thing for a Gryffindor prefect, the one known for skipping out on prefect meetings and falling asleep in the middle of her night watches, is maybe not ideal for Minkyung’s whole “get-smart-and-graduate” plan.

But sometimes people like Kyungwon are unavoidable, since Sungyeon finally convinced her that she couldn’t be studying in her room and dragged her down to the Great Hall between classes. She can study there and, y’know, also eat or something.

Yewon and Jieqiong have found their way to their table as well, and the four are eating and Minkyung can study for her NEWTs, until Kyungwon sits down next to Yewon. She smells cold.

“Eunwoo hasn’t spoken to Yaebin for the past month and she won’t tell me why,” is all she says.

“She’s playing hard to get,” Jieqiong says, not looking up from the magazine she’s reading. “Is it working?”

“Yaebin cried to me about it last night,” Kyungwon replies.

“Nice not a response.”

“Why would Eunwoo be playing hard to get?” The four girls look at Kyungwon. Well, the three do, Minkyung’s been looking between her and the entrance to The Great Hall since she sat down.

“Eunwoo likes Yaebin,” Sungyeon says delicately. Kyungwon stares at the table for a moment, takes a long, deep sigh, and then another one, just because this is a two-sigh situation.

“Eunwoo. Likes. Yaebin,” she repeats.

“And she asked people for advice on, well, I’m not really sure,” Sungyeon continues. “Either confessing or getting Yaebin to like her back. That wasn’t really clear to me.”

“I told her that she should try and play into Yaebin’s interests, since they could bond over stuff like that,” Yewon adds. “So I think she tried to take up pranking or something.”

“That’s why Eunwoo gave me onion powder chocolates,” Kyungwon says slowly.

“Probably. Nayoung’s advice was useless,” Sungyeon says. “I don’t really know what it was.”

“That’s not really her strong suit,” Jieqiong muses, and there seems like there’s a story behind the statement. Minkyung realizes they’re probably close enough that she could ask about it.

“And she asked all of you for help, but not me?” Kyungwon asks, regaining energy in her voice. “Did you know about this?” She turns to look at Minkyung. Minkyung shakes her head. “This is unbelievable.” She turns back to the other three girls, and Minkyung untenses. “She has a crush on our best friend and she doesn’t even tell me and then she does some stupid whatever nonsense on someone else’s suggestion!”

“Sounds about right,” Sungyeon answers.

“Well all of your advice was terrible. That is not how you win a girl. That is not how you win a girl!” And with that Kyungwon stands up and storms out, probably to find Eunwoo, maybe to set things right.

Minkyung allows herself to completely relax, until she sees Jieqiong grinning at her from across the table. “Do you want our help on what to do with a crush?”

Minkyung leaves just as quickly as Kyungwon did.

* * *

Second year wasn’t Minkyung’s best time. She was twelve, and her father was a bit too ambitious about where her studies could lead her. Sure, she’d gotten perfect marks on her first year exams, but she was only twelve now. And high expectations on a twelve year old meant her crying to Yoobin in the middle of a relatively busy library in December, shortly before break began.

Yoobin was flustered, and Minkyung felt horrible about it after the fact, but she’d scored (Kim family standard) bad on one Herbology paper, and the weight of the world was on her shoulders that day. And Yoobin did her best, considering they were both twelve.

So Minkyung cried, and Yoobin comforted, and eventually they tried to move on and get back to what they came to the library to do: study.

One the way out, Minkyung noticed something on the corner of the desk. It was a bar of chocolate, with a small note attached to it.

_Hello!_  
_My mom sent candy last week. It’s a caramel chocolate bar (the best kind, duh). I hope you’ll feel less down (sorry for overhearing, but my friends weren’t studying anyway and I wasn’t paying attention to them). You can do it!_  
_P.S. I think we’re in the same Herbology class. I got a D on that paper, so PERSPECTIVE!! Getting a B is a fine grade, it all averages out anyway  
_ _P. P. S. sorry if you don’t like non-wizarding candy._

Minkyung liked the candy bar, and tried to hold onto the wrapper to find more later. She lost track of it at some point and probably threw it out by accident. So Kyungwon sitting down across from her in the library, holding a box full of chocolates, and immediately pulling out the exact kind she remembered from second year certainly shocked her.

But she really shouldn’t have been surprised.

“Once my mom figured out owls it was nonstop care packages. Do you want this?” She holds the chocolate bar out to Minkyung, who takes it numbly. “I promised Yaebin a cookies and cream one. She’s been obsessed with them lately. I’ll have to see if my mom remembered.”

“Ah.”

“Yeah, she’s a real pain. I’ve been trying to convince my mom to let her stay with us for the summer, just because I think watching Quidditch-Superstar-Kang-Yaebin try and navigate the non-wizarding world would be hilarious. It’s easier said than done, though.” Minkyung nods, even though Kyungwon can’t see her. She doesn’t really know what to say. Kyungwon finally looks up and blinks, realizing where she is. “You’re studying? Oh man, my bad. I didn’t mean to interrupt you.”

“It’s fine,” Minkyung tries.

“I was just so excited about getting candy. I usually give some to my friends,” Kyungwon is saying, and Minkyung wonders if they’re friends, considering the number of interactions they’ve had can be counted on one hand. “I didn’t mean to detract you from whatever work you’re doing.”

“I’ve been here since seven,” Minkyung says, cutting in before Kyungwon can say anything else. “I needed a break anyway.” Kyungwon seems to relax a little. Minkyung wonders if she was actually nervous, though.

“That’s my strong suit,” Kyungwon says, pulling something else out of the box. “Have you ever had Fun Dip?”

“What?”

“It’s the most disgusting candy in the world, just pure sugar, and my mom sent me some and I love it.” Minkyung stares at the green packaging Kyungwon placed in front of her. “This side,” Kyungwon says, pointing. “Is a sugar stick. And this side is just pure sugar powder.”

“That sounds disgusting,” Minkyung replies.

“It is and you have to try it.”

* * *

Kyungwon asked Eunwoo to hang out, finally (she doesn’t know why Kyungwon’s been avoiding her, and she’s also been avoiding Yaebin, which is even worse because Eunwoo’s also been avoiding Yaebin). Kyungwon also looks pissed when Eunwoo finally finds her standing outside by a tree.

“What are you doing?” Kyungwon asks when Eunwoo approaches.

“Hanging out with you?”

“I thought you and Yaebin were fighting for the past few months.” Oh.

“Well-”

“Yaebin thought the two of you were fighting for the past few months,” Kyungwon continues. “She’s cried about it because she can’t figure out what she did. And this is all because you like her?” Eunwoo is surely going to kill her friends for spilling her secrets to Kyungwon. She wonders what other ones they’ve shared with her. They won’t live long enough to share any more, however.

“Well nothing I do works!” Eunwoo replies angrily. “I tried flirting with her and following her hobbies and playing hard to get, but nothing works!”

“Eunwoo,” Kyungwon says, looking calm. “You don’t need to do anything.” Eunwoo stares at her. “Just talk to her and be yourself. You don’t need to waste time trying to perform Feats of Flirting for Yaebin to like you.”

Eunwoo frowned. “Then why doesn’t she?”

Kyungwon just rolls her eyes. “I’m leaving because I can’t respond to that statement.” She turns and leaves, and Eunwoo can hear her mumbling under her breath something about third-wheeling and Eunwoo playing hard to get.

Third-wheeling?

“Are you going to tell me why you’re mad at me now?” Eunwoo spins around in her spot, staring at Yaebin standing behind her. Kyungwon probably orchestrated this, she realizes. She’ll kill her later, too. Right now Yaebin’s looking like a lost puppy, and Eunwoo probably looks like a deer in headlights, and it’s probably time to come clean.

* * *

Kyungwon stares up at the sky. It’s March, still cold, and she maybe shouldn’t be outside, but she wants to think, so she’s out here. It’s a clear day, at least, and the snow is gone, but it’s still cold. And it might snow more later in the week, according to the forecast, Kyungwon hopes it doesn’t.

“Hey.” Minkyung’s standing above her, covering the sky. Kyungwon blinks twice, making sure she’s not just imagining things.

“Hey.” Minkyung sits down next to her.

“What are you doing out here?” She asks.

“Cloudwatching, you?”

“Trying to take a break from studying,” Minkyung replies. The two sit in silence, Kyungwon watching the sky. At some point Minkyung lies out next to her and watches the sky too.

“Do you know when we first met?” Kyungwon asks.

“Third year, when your friend pelted me with a snowball,” Minkyung replies.

Kyungwon shakes her head, even though Minkyung can’t see it. “It was first year, and I was petrified on the Hogwarts Express. You sat next to me and said that you knew everything there was to know about magic, and that if I had any questions I could just ask you.”

“Oh.”

“I asked why I couldn’t bring my Gameboy to Hogwarts, and you didn’t know what a Gameboy was,” Kyungwon grins. “I didn’t realize you were the one who said that to me until the OWL scores came out and everyone was talking about your scores. I saw you in the hallway and recognized you then.”

“You gave me a chocolate bar in second year, when I was crying in the library,” Minkyung replies.

“I didn’t know that was you,” Kyungwon says. “How did you know it was me?”

Minkyung falters for a moment, before remembering that nobody knows what she smelled in the Amortentia, and it wouldn’t hurt. “You always smell like eucalyptus,” she says.

“That’s so funny,” Kyungwon says quietly in response. “Did you like it?” Minkyung hums in response. “I’ll tell my mom to bring more of them next time.”

* * *

Minkyung’s invited to another Hufflepuff-Ravenclaw game, and she gets to meet Yaebin.

“This,” Eunwoo said with a flourish. “Is Gryffindor’s star Seeker, the hero we all deserve, Kang Yaebin.”

“My reputation precedes me, naturally,” Yaebin says with mock arrogance. Minkyung notices that Eunwoo and Yaebin have stopped fighting.

“Nice to meet you.” Yaebin nods at her, and recognition flashes over her face.

“You’re the girl I pelted in the face with a snowball!” She says, pointing and smiling. A bit of a weird response.

“You remember that?”

“Kyungwon’s never let me live it down! What a pleasure to finally put a name and personality to a snowball covered face!”

“Boy, what a great way to introduce yourself to someone,” Sungyeon says sarcastically.

“Gryffindor’s star seeker Kang Yaebin, everyone,” Siyeon joins in. “What a delightful personality.”

“Siyeon, you are lucky I’m a pacifist,” Yaebin says, and glares at her. Siyeon makes a face in response.

“If you guys are going to be like this you aren’t invited next time,” Sungyeon says absentmindedly. “Now be nice to each other and make up.”

“Fine,” Yaebin says, rolling her eyes. “Siyeon, you’re a prodigy and I greatly admire your prowess on the pitch.”

Siyeon nods. “You are certainly an inspiration to me, with your reputation. I hope someday to be as good of a seeker as you are.”

“Was that genuine?” Minkyung whispers to Sungyeon, confused.

“Yeah, they’re like that,” Sungyeon says. “Nobody takes the rivalry too seriously, except them when they’re in public. So any time they can hang out, they do.They’re actually really fond of each other.”

“Oh.”

“I don’t know why they can’t just drop the ‘sworn enemies’ act, nobody buys it.”

The game starts, and everything is forgotten. Yewon isn’t with them, sitting instead with some Hufflepuff friends. Minkyung noticed her earlier, Yoobin was sitting with her, with a Hufflepuff that Minkyung knew.

“Does Kyungwon really like her?” Minkyung hears Yaebin whisper to Eunwoo.

“She’s tall and smart,” Eunwoo whispers back.

“Oh, of course!” Minkyung wonders who they’re talking about.

* * *

_In Minkyung’s third year Yoobin got the flu. She was confined to the infirmary for a month, and Minkyung visited as often as she could. About the second week in, a cot on the other side of the infirmary was causing some issues._

_“Is she okay?” Minkyung turns to watch the two girls yelling to the nurse._

_“It’s just a broken arm, not the worst thing you can get from a bludger,” the nurse says, and the girl looks no less upset._

_“Why isn’t she awake?” The other one asks._

_“She’s going to be unconscious until we’ve got the cast on, so that she doesn’t have to feel too much pain.” The nurse is clearly getting annoyed. Minkyung tries to ignore the rest of their conversation, instead trying to explain to Yoobin that she doesn’t have to finish all of her work before she gets over the flu, she has plenty of time extensions from her professor._

_Apparently, something the two girls said really got on the nurse’s nerves, and everyone is kicked out of the infirmary. Minkyung finds herself standing in front of the closed doors, staring at them blankly. At least she grabbed Yoobin’s potions paper before she left. She’ll have to do that with everything else at some point too._

_“I know you’re worried and all, but you didn’t have to get us kicked out,” Minkyung says, turning to look at the two of them._

_“I’m allowed to be worried!” the shorter one says, glaring._

_“Sorry,” the taller one says, smiling awkwardly. “It was Yaebin’s first game, so we’re a bit overly paranoid.”_

_Minkyung nods, looking down at the paper. Yoobin’s handwriting looks horrible, and even if she managed to finish it, there’s no way a professor could read it. “I get it.”_

_“Was that Bae Yoobin in there?” The taller one asks. The shorter one is fuming, ignoring them completely._

_“Yeah. She has the flu.”_

_“She’s my Herbology partner. I was wondering why she was out.” Minkyung nods, remember Yoobin complaining about her Herbology partner, a ‘good for nothing Gryffindor who didn’t know the first thing about plants.’ “I finished most of our work, so when she’s doing a little better I can bring her the paper to read.”_

_“Really?” Minkyung asked. It came out rude. She felt kind of bad._

_“Yeah. I got Eunji to help me with it. She’s the Gryffindor Head Girl and she has a bunch of friends smarter than me, so it came out okay for once,” the girl replies, unfazed. “I know how to get help when I need it.” Minkyung nods. “Well, tell her I hope she feels better soon,” the taller one says, and then grabs the shorter one by her shoulders and pushes her in the direction of the Gryffindor common room._

_When Minkyung tells Yoobin, she makes a face, but later says the paper actually came out well. “Kyungwon’s annoying,” Yoobin says. Minkyung just nods. There’s nothing else she could say._

* * *

Kyungwon starts sitting in on Minkyung’s study sessions, even the ones Sungyeon isn’t there for. She’s really good about things, and doesn’t distract Minkyung from her studies until Minkyung looks stressed and burnt out. Minkyung is thankful.

“You study a lot,” Kyungwon says one day while a History of Magic paper is silently kicking Minkyung’s ass.

“I’m going to get a good job when I graduate,” Minkyung says absentmindedly.

“But you don’t have to study as much as you do to get a good job,” Kyungwon says. She’s resting her head on her arm lying on the table.

“School is what I’m good at,” Minkyung replies.

“I see.”

“What?”

Kyungwon shrugs, not moving. “I dunno. I’m kind of jealous. I suck at magic, that’s all.”

“Oh.”

“Sometimes I wonder if they gave a letter to the wrong person, you know? Like maybe it was meant for my sister, or for another Kyungwon. I’m just not great at magic. Sometimes I think about just going back to being a non-wizard when I graduate, but you don’t just forget about magic like that.” Minkyung doesn’t know what to say. “I dunno,” Kyungwon continues. “I think it’s just because being a sports announcer is the most fun thing I’ve ever done.”

Minkyung nods.

“I’m sure that’s how you feel about school. I know we’re supposed to have good, realistic dreams, but right now i just want to follow the things I love as far as I can,” Kyungwon says with a grin. Minkyung gives her a small smile back, and wonders if she should follow the things she loves too.

* * *

There’s a Ravenclaw-Slytherin game, which means that Minkyung gets invited, and, for once, almost everyone is there.

“They’re training a new announcer,” Kyungwon says, taking a seat beside Minkyung. “Her name’s Somi and she’s a second year and she’s.” Kyungwon does an Italian Chef’s kiss. “She’s just wonderful. She’s brilliant.”

“Welcome back to the world of the lay folks,” Eunwoo says with a grin. Kyungwon sticks her tongue out at her.

“It is weird to not have to announce it to everyone,” Kyungwon says with a shrug.

“I know,” Yaebin says. “It’s going to be weird for the announcer to not make fun of me all the time.”

“Oh don’t worry,” Kyungwon replies with a grin. “I’ve commandeered as many of the Gryffindor games as I can, and I’ve also got a monopoly on the Quidditch Cup for the next two years.” Yaebin swears quietly under her breath.

“The Quidditch Cup is coming up,” Sungyeon remarks.

“So are final exams,” Kyla chimes in.

“And OWLs and NEWTs,” Minkyung adds.

“Look at Ravenclaw, knowing when things are,” Kyungwon says. “In Gryffindor we wake up every day and find out something is happening and just roll with it. No planning!”

“I’m going to be sad for the year to be over,” Yewon remarks. “It’s always weird going home for the summer and not seeing any of you guys.”

“Kyungwon and Minkyung are going to be seniors next year,” Sungyeon remarks.

“Ooh, do you guys have post-graduation plans?” Yewon asks.

“I have to see what I get on the NEWTs,” Minkyung says with a shrug.

“I’m going to a non-wizarding college,” Kyungwon answers. “It was the deal I made with my parents to accept the invitation to go here.”

“Your plans are so boring,” Eunwoo says, making a face. “Why not like, backpack through Asia or visit Canada or something?”

“It would be weird to go alone,” Minkyung says.

“Yeah,” Kyungwon says, leaning back. “I wouldn’t have anyone to go with.”

“Just go together.”

“We’d have to get Muggle money,” Minkyung says by way of half-assed excuse.

Kyungwon hums. “I am rolling in ‘Muggle money’,” she says. “I got Euros, I got pounds, I have more than several Canadian pennies that now have no value. I got a yen coin of questionable denomination from my dad one summer.”

The game starts and the conversation ends. Minkyung is thankful, but Kyungwon looks at her throughout the game. She tries not to read into it.

* * *

“Are you studying?” Kyungwon asks, walking up to Minkyung. It’s spring and everyone is outside trying to enjoy the weather. She is studying, but she says she’s not, so Kyungwon sits down beside her and starts picking up grass to pick apart. “I’m so tired,” Kyungwon says with a sigh. “Eunwoo’s actually making us study for once, and as glad as I am that her and Yaebin are getting those feelings out in the open, the third-wheeling has never been so strong.”

“Are they dating?” Minkyung asks.

“It’s a process,” Kyungwon says. “But they’re getting there.”

Minkyung is trying to put her books back into her bag as discretely as she can. She’s sure Kyungwon can see them, but she’s still trying.

“I know you were studying,” Kyungwon says finally.

“You don’t normally sit and talk when I am,” Minkyung replies.

“I felt selfish today,” Kyungwon says with a shrug. “I’m glad we’re friends now,” Kyungwon says after a moment. “I saw you all the time, but I never knew how to approach you. So it’s nice that this happened.” Kyungwon turns to look at her. “I’m really glad.”

Minkyung doesn’t know exactly what it is about this one moment that makes the whole truth spill out of her mouth, and yet it does.

“Do you remember in the beginning of the year when we made Amortentia in potions class?”

Kyungwon wrinkles her nose. “Me and Jiho’s came out wrong. It smelled like beef chili and the professor said it was the worst attempt he’d ever seen.”

“I made it correctly.”

“Shocking,” Kyungwon says, jokingly.

“It smelled like you,” Minkyung said.

“Like me?”

“We would always run into each other, or I’d see you with your friends doing nice things, and you’d always smell like eucalyptus. We never knew each other. I remember last year I would fall asleep during my shifts around the halls, because I was studying for OWLs. You were the one who would wake me up and send me back to the Ravenclaw dorm and do my shifts for me. And any time I had to go to Quidditch games with the prefects, you’d always be the announcer. I hate Quidditch, so it was the high points of the game.” Kyungwon is just staring at her, and it takes everything Minkyung has not to turn and run. “It’s just,” she pauses. “I’ve seen you all over the past six years, and you’re always surrounded by friends and being a kind person to everyone. At first I thought I was just jealous of your friends, but I don’t know. That’s it though, the Amortentia smells like you.”

Kyungwon’s beaming at her, and Minkyung feels uncomfortable.

“Let’s go to Canada,” Kyungwon says.

“What?”

“When we graduate, let’s visit Canada together.”

“That’s over a year away.”

“That’s fine,” Kyungwon says, and she jumps up. “We have a ton of things we need to plan before we can go. Have you met my dogs?”

“Your dogs are here?”

“It’s a big secret and you can’t tell anybody!” Kyungwon pulls Minkyung up so she’s standing and grabs Minkyung’s bag, stuffing the last book into it. “It is imperative, however, that you meet my dogs.”


End file.
